Jamie Samuelsen's blog: Three keys the Detroit Lions should get from Seahawks' Super Bowl win

Feb. 4, 2014

Seattle Seahawks' Cliff Avril. / Associated Press

Written by

Jamie Samuelsen

Detroit Free Press Special Writer

Jamie Samuelsen, co-host of the “Jamie and Wojo” show at 6 p.m. weekdays on WXYT-FM (97.1), blogs for freep.com. His opinions do not necessarily reflect those of the Detroit Free Press nor its writers. You can reach him at jamsam22@gmail.com, follow him on Twitter @jamiesamuelsen and read more of his opinions at freep.com/jamie.

What can the Detroit Lions learn from the rise of the Seattle Seahawks?

There’s no magic formula. Let’s be clear on that from the start.

The Baltimore Ravens won the Super Bowl last year and failed to make the playoffs this year. The New York Giants turned the same trick the previous season. Sure, the Seahawks look like a young, unbeatable team that will contend for championships for years to come (and perhaps they will). But just remember that they were an inch away from losing to the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC championship. And given the 49ers talent and coaching, don’t be surprised to see them representing the NFC in the Super Bowl next season.

But you also can’t dismiss just how good the Seahawks have become and how quickly they’ve done it. Eight years ago, the lost to the Pittsburgh Steelers at Super Bowl XL in Detroit. In that period of time, they’ve changed coaches twice, turned over their roster completely and now have the best team in the sport. During that same period, the Lions have had one winning season and zero playoff wins. How’s that for a dose of reality on this cold winter day?

The Seahawks have done it with bold free agent signings, clever trades and remarkable scouting and drafting. They’ve embraced their strengths and rolled the dice a time or two. You have to get a little but lucky to get this far, and rest assured that Seattle has had some luck (see Flynn, Matt). But let’s look at what they’ve done the best and let’s see how the Lions stack up against them.

Speed on defense

We knew the names and we knew the talent. I just don’t think that football fans truly appreciated the skill.

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Every time it looked like the Broncos had a sliver of hope in the Super Bowl, the Seahawk defenders closed the door by closing in quickly on the ball. Whether it was safeties such as Kam Chancellor and Earl Thomas or cornerbacks such as Richard Sherman or linebackers such as game MVP Malcolm Smith or even former Lion Cliff Avril and defensive tackle Brandon Mebane – the Seahawks were just too fast.

Great athletes such as Wes Welker and Demaryius Thomas couldn’t get any space to maneuver. And when they did make catches, they were tackled quickly often without any gain. The Seattle defense can cover and get after the quarterback. But perhaps their most impressive trait is that they can quickly recover and deliver the tackle when they actually do get beat.

As for the Lions, they have a ways to go. New coach Jim Caldwell praised the Lions’ speed when he was introduced as the new head coach last month. He clearly believes in the correlation between fast players and successful teams. There is some speed on the defensive side of the ball in the form of Ndamukong Suh, Ziggy Ansah and DeAndre Levy. But there also are some aging linebackers and some serious holes in the secondary.

As well as the Lions defense performed at times last year, there are still the lasting memories of Adrian Peterson, James Jones and A.J. Green scoring 75 - plus yard touchdowns. As the Lions get better through free agency and the draft, they’re going to have to get faster in the defensive secondary.

The draft

The No. 1 reason that the Seahawks are champions today is because they’ve drafted brilliantly. GM John Schneider and coach Pete Carroll deserve a lion’s share of the credit. We’re seeing in Detroit what happens when you stock your team with top picks. Sure, they can play. But they eat up so much cap space that they make it nearly impossible to strengthen the rest of the roster.

Not so in Seattle. The MVP was Smith, a seventh-round pick. The starting quarterback was Russell Wilson, a third-round pick. By now, you all know that Sherman was taken in the fifth round. Chancellor was taken in the fifth as well. This is the soul of the Seahawks. They have great, young, inexpensive players. Of course, all will demand huge raises in the coming years. But the bottom line is that if you’re not drafting well, you’re losing.

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The Lions are coming off a very solid draft where GM Martin Mayhew and Brian Xanders drafted five players who started and also grabbed two undrafted free agents (LaAdrian Waddle and Joseph Fauria) that were important contributors. For that, they get credit and, for that, Mayhew probably saved his job. Now on to 2014.

With the cap almost maxed out and a Suh extension coming this summer, this draft will have to be even better than last year’s which is a rather tall order. Mayhew will need to draft at least three regular starters and a couple more contributors if the Lions hope to make huge strides next fall. Quarterback Matthew Stafford and Jim Caldwell will be under some pressure to improve this team from 2013. But let’s be fair – this roster still needs some work.

Mobility at quarterback

This part is scary. Wilson can run and he can throw. Because the defense is so good, he doesn’t have to be Peyton Manning. But then again, look how that worked out for Manning. The best young quarterbacks can run. And the next wave of quarterbacks coming through the college ranks (Johnny Manziel, Brett Hundley, Jameis Winston) can run, too.

Matthew Stafford can’t. He’s not a statue back there, but he is no threat to take off when the pocket collapses and he rarely makes something out of nothing as Wilson did Sunday night. In fact, that weakness leads to Stafford’s greater weakness – the interceptions. When Wilson can’t find anything downfield, he runs. When Stafford can’t find anything, he tries to force the ball into a space that doesn’t sometimes exist. It’s the difference between making a positive out of a negative and making a huge negative out of a negative.

I don’t see that getting better for the Lions as Stafford gets older. Drew Brees, Tom Brady and both Mannings have all won titles without much mobility. But being mobile does seem to be the trend in football.

Can the Lions do it? Of course not – it’s the Lions! Then again, the Seahawks join the Saints and the Buccaneers as two teams to win in the past 12 years who were long thought to be in the same boat as the Lions – lovable losers who simply can’t get it done. The Lions have some pieces. But if the Seahawks are now the model, the Lions have a ways to go to catch them. And this year’s offseason needs to be nearly perfect.